Clete Willems Quoted by Reuters on Resumption of U.S.-China Trade Talks

Reuters has quoted Akin Gump public law and policy partner Clete Willems in the article “Trump says U.S., Chinese teams to restart trade talks ahead of G20.”

The article reports that President Trump said he had spoken with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, and that the two leaders’ teams would restart trade talks. The resumption of negotiations, the article notes, comes after a long lull, but also comes as Washington and Beijing prepare for a meeting between Mr. Trump and Mr. Xi at the G20 summit later this month.

“This is a very positive development,” said Willems, a former senior trade negotiator for the Trump administration and head of the White House Office of International Economic Affairs. “Leader level engagement at last year’s G20 was critical to jumpstarting the talks. It will be essential to managing the current political dynamic and getting the talks back on track once again.”